The present disclosure relates to apparatus and methods of retaining and releasing funnels or other structures used in conjunction with beverage preparation equipment.
A variety of equipment has been developed for use in making or producing beverages. Such beverage preparation equipment or beverage making machines may include reconstituting or diluting a concentrated substance, brewing a beverage from a beverage brewing substance such as coffee, tea, or herbs as well as other methods of producing brewed beverages or other food products. Terms including beverage, beverage making and brewing as used herein are intended to be broadly defined as including but not limited to the brewing of coffee, tea, herbs and any other brewed beverage. This broad interpretation is also intended to include, but is not limited to any process of infusing, steeping, reconstituting, diluting, dissolving, saturating or passing a liquid through or otherwise mixing or combining a beverage substance with a liquid such as water without a limitation to the temperature of such liquid unless specified. This broad interpretation is also intended to include, but is not limited to beverage substances such as ground coffee, tea, herbs, liquid beverage concentrate, powdered beverage concentrate, freeze dried coffee or other beverage concentrates, to obtain a desired beverage or other food.
A group of such beverage and food preparation equipment may use a funnel or other container or holder in the production of the beverage. By way of example, but not limitation, we will refer to beverage brewing equipment or beverage making equipment in the present disclosure. This disclosure is not limited to making beverages by brewing but will be broadly interpreted to include any form of beverage making equipment. In many forms of beverage making equipment a funnel or substance holder is included for retaining a beverage making substance for mixing with heated water. Additionally, beverage making equipment for reconstituting or mixing freeze-dried coffee with heated water has been developed which also uses a funnel.
Beverage brewing equipment might include a housing having a base, a trunk and a hood. Generally, in this example, the hood is a portion of the housing extending from the trunk a dimension and overhanging the base. A beverage carafe is placed underneath the hood with the funnel being attached to the hood above the carafe. Generally, such funnels have an outwardly extending flange. An underside of the hood is provided with two channels or rails which are oriented for receiving the flange of the funnel therein. In this manner, the funnel can be slidably mounted by positioning the flange between the opposed channels.
It may be desirable to retain the funnel in the position under the hood, engaged in the rails, throughout the beverage making or brewing process. By retaining the funnel in this position, the escape of steam from the brewing process may be reduced or prevented. This helps to retain the steam in the funnel for subsequent condensation and draining from the funnel. This also reduces or eliminates the escape and intrusion of steam into the brewer housing. Retaining the funnel in a desired position under the hood during the brewing process also helps eliminate inadvertent attempts to remove the funnel during the brewing process which can result in spillage of material into the carafe or on the base of the brewer. It would be desirable to retain the funnel in the position under the hood to eliminate having to clean up any mess created by inadvertent spilling of brewing substance or beverage.
Additional features will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of drawings.